Clarinet



July 14', 1925. 1,546,153

- w. o. UPTON CLARINET Filed Aug. 31, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. W O. U ion A TTORNEYS.

July 14, 1925. 1,546,153

W. O. UPTON CLARINET Filed Aug. 31, 1922 2 Sheets-Shaet 2 Patented July 14, 1925.

UNITED STATES WILL O. UPTON, OF PLACER-VILLE, CALIFORNIA.

CLARINET.

Application filed August 31, 1922v To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILL O. UP'roN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Placerville, in the county of Eldorado and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in a Clarinet; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The object of the invention is to provide a clarinet particularly of the type having ring keys in the upper joint or section with an open G sharp pad whereby in trilling particularly with the A pad it is unnecessary as in the ordinary practice to hold the G sharp key open with the same finger which operates the A pad, and otherwise to simplify the operation of the instrument; and with this object in view the invention consists in a construction and arrangement to which all clarinets of the type indicated are subject either in the original manufao ture or by alteration, of which a preferred embodiment is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a clarinet having a construction and mount ing of the G sharp and other related pads constructed in accordance with the invention, I

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing the parts particularly relating to the mounting of the pads in section or partly broken away,

Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view of the same on the plane indicated by the line 3-3 of Figure 1,

Figure 1 is a side view of a portion of a clarinet of the Boehm type fitted with pad mechanism embodying the invention and constituting a. modification of that shown in Figures 1 and 2 which represents an Albert clarinet,

Figures 5 and 6 are detail transverse sectional views on the planes indicated respectively by the lines 55 and 6-6 of Fig ure 4.

Mounted upon the tube 10 of the clarinet (the drawing representing a portion of the upper joint thereof) are the G sharp pad 11, the A pad 12, the first and second ring keys 13 and 14 and the B fiat pad 15, all of which are arranged in the same general relation as in the typical or conventional Serial No. 585,386.

forms of clarinets of the type indicated, the said ring keys being associated respectively with the finger openings 13 and 11- and the second ring 14 as usual carrying the supplemental key 16.

The A pad is mounted upon a rocker spindle 17 consisting as in the ordinary construction of a sleeve through which extends a rod 18 connecting the posts 19, the A pad normally being held closed by spring 12 and being in terminal overlapping relation with the auxiliary key 16 which is held raised by the normally elevated ring key it.

In the ordinary construction the G sharp key is normally closed and in trilling the A pad it is necessary to hold the G sharp pad open while the A pad is vibrated, and the holding of the G sharp pad according to the conventional construction of clarinets must be accomplished by the same finger which. is used to vibrate the A pad. In the illustrated construction the stem 20 of the G sharp pad is carried by a sleeve 21 through which extends a pivot rod 22 in the form of a screw which connects the posts 23 and 21, said sleeve having an actuating spring 25 tending to yieldingly hold the G sharp pad open. 7 v

The same sleeve 21 carries the second ring key 1 1 and a lateral lug 26 serves to limit the opening movement of the G sharp pad and therefore the elevation of the ring key. The first ring key 13 is carried by a sleeve member 27 which is separate from the sleeve 21 and is actuated by a spring, s8 to normally hold the ring elevated as in the ordinary practice, a stop lug 29 being carried thereby. The sleeve 27 which carries the first ring key 13 is also provided with an arm 30 which engages the lug 26 and serves as a means of rocking the sleeve 21 carrying the 1 G sharp pad to effect the closing of the G sharp pad when the first ring key is depressed. The B flat pad 15 is carried by a separate sleeve rocker 31 and is yieldingly held closed as in the ordinary practice, said sleeve however being carried by the same pivot rod which supports the sleeves 21 and 27 and which extends through the post 24 to the terminal post 32.

The stem 20 of the G sharp pad is arched as indicated in Figure 2 to remove it from the path of the stem of the A pad so as to permit of the free vibratory movement of the latter and the closing of the G sharp pad when either of the ring keys is do pressed, without looking or interfering with the motion of the A pad and in other respects the operation of the parts of the .instrument corresponds with that of the conventional torms of clarinets. A short bracing sleeve 83 may as indicated be interposed between the post .13 and a supplemental post 34 connected by a 's-crew rod 35, said post 34- being the one which in the ordinary construction of clarinets is connected wit-h the post 19: of the A key to carry the G sharp pad. Thus the essential change in the construction of the instrumentin order to maintain a normally opened G sharp pad consists in an extension of the rocker sleeve which ordinarily carries the "normally held raised or in its'open position and therefore is properly located to permit otthe trilling of the A. pad without manipulation of the G sharp pad.

In the matter or" fingering, the only change necessitated by the modification herein disclosed're'sides in the fact that G natural is taken by closing thefirst ring key 13 and F sharpis taken by closing the first ring key and the-usual thumb hole on the reverse or opposite side of the [clarinet tube, whereas with the closed G sharp pad G is taken with all of the fingers off of the instrument while the F sharp is taken by closing the thumb hole alone. When the octave key is added C sharp and D of the upper register are produced like F sharp and G respectively and in this way the fine gering is substantially simplified in reference tothe upper notes. It is however in the trilling of A and Gr sharp that the most important advantage of the invention is secured in that under the ordinary practice it is necessary to open the Gsharp pad with the second joint of the index finger of the as compared with the Albert type of clarinet shown in Figures 2 and 3; the key of A 'pad-l2 is provided witha depending lug 12 to'bear upon the pad arm 16 carried by the rocker 21* and having an arm 20 which carries the G'sharp pad 11 northe A pad is released and permitted to close under its actuation spring, the G sharp pad is opened b'yits actuation spring 11*.

The operation of the A pad is suthcient to cause a, trilhng action as in the form illus trated in Figures 1 and 2, and the operation of the instrument therefore is'simplified in carrying out the indicated object'o-f the invention.

Having thus described the invention,

what I claim is: r

1. A clarinet of the type provided with rmgke'ys on the upper oint, having coaxially arranged rockers, of which one carries' aring key and the other the second ring key and the G sharp pad, means for yield ingly holding the'ringkeys raised and the G sharp pad open, and means for communicating closing movement from the first named to the second named rocker. V

'2. A. clarinet of the type provided witl ring keys on the upper joint, having coaxially arranged rockers, of which one carries a ring key and the other the second ring key and the G sharp pad, means'for yieldingly holding the ring keys raised and the Gr-sharp' pad open, "andrmeans forcommunicating closing movement from the first named to the second namedrocker; and conslsting of an arm on the former engaging a alateral lug on the latter;

A' clarinet of the type provided with ring keys on the upper joint, having coaxial rockersleeves mounted upon a com mon pivot rod, one of said sleeves carrying the first ring key and the second sleeve 'ca'r rying the second ring key and the G sharp pad, yielding means for maintaining the said ring and G sharp pads in the raised or open posit-1011s, a stop for limiting'the opening movement'of the first ring key, and a connection between the rocker-sleeve of: the first ring key and the second rocker sleeve whereby closing movement of" the first ring key'will effect closing movement of the G sharp pad.

In testimony whereof afiix myfsignav ture in presence of two witnesses.

WILL OIIPTON Witnesses: JOHN HORN,

GEO. TA TMEIR. 

